An annual theme for me (and many others!) is how to keep New Year’s resolutions. I’m doing better than usual this year. This week, I share the tools that are helping me, in the hopes that they inspire and help you keep your resolutions too. Come back next week to read Kyle’s tips. [I’m absolutely going to use at least three of her tools!]
My New Year’s resolutions are centered around process goals, not outcomes I can not control. Where did I come up with this radical idea you ask? I got it from Laura Vanderkam on my favorite podcast of course!
May the force be with you!
Lani’s Tools to Keep New Year’s Resolutions for 2021
1. Keep up daily habits and get organized with the right planner.
If you need help choosing the right planner or learning how to plan, check out the planning podcast from Sarah Hart-Unger, Best Laid Plans. If you listen carefully over the next few months, you’ll hear the first ever Real Life Style ad!
The best way to keep New Year’s resolutions is to keep yourself accountable. Write down your goals and the daily rituals required to achieve them. The Dreambook + Planner breaks down this process for those who aren’t naturally inclined toward big picture planning. And very importantly, it also holds endless to do lists!
I purchased the Dreambook Bundle with the Mountain Cover. However, my cover is now only available separately. Shop all Dreambook planners and courses for more options. I purchased the undated Dreambook + Planner because I bought it mid-year. But, they sell a dated 2021 Dreambook + Planner for those looking now. You can even buy the Dreambook without the planner part if that’s more your speed!
The Dreambook Planner is not right for everyone. Truthfully, I bought it in a fit of inspiration after a client showed it to me. But, I didn’t start it for over a year. I was too intimidated by the “work” of answering the questions at the start of the planner. This experience showed me how much I needed the planner! And after listening to Best Laid Plans all this year, I felt ready to do the work.
2. Exercise in an apartment with a smaller stationary bike.
Getting cardio exercise in an apartment is a challenge. I constantly hear my upstairs neighbor jumping rope. And while I don’t mind the noise, the people who live below me do! I wish I was motivated to go running or biking outside at 7am. Unfortunately, I am not that kind of person.
I never got into the stationary bike when I was going to the gym. However, after experiencing how great biking is for us on our weekend rides, Mr. Real Life Style found the Schwinn 170 Stationary Bike to help us get our cardio in on the weekdays (and in the middle of winter). The Schwinn 170 Stationary Bike has a super small footprint and all the functionality that I need. It also makes virtually no noise.
Here’s hoping our new stationary bike helps me follow doctor’s orders to do 3 hours of cardio a week. Life in your mid-forties… My process goal is to work up to 30 minutes on the stationary bike 6 days a week.
3. Lose weight and count your calorie intake with the MyNetDiary Calorie Tracker app.
How many peoples’ New Year’s resolution is to lose weight? Rather than a drastic diet plan, I’m trying to stave off any more of the inevitable weight gain from a slowing metabolism by tracking my calories as part of my lifestyle. Part of this motivation comes from watching clients deal with menopausal weight gain. If I’m guaranteed to gain 10 pounds when I’m 50, regardless of my caloric intake, better to start in the best place I possibly can.
I’ve never been able to keep up with an app or paper food diary for more than 5 days. MyNetDiary is easy (and almost fun) to use. I am on day 15 and still going strong! My process goal here is to consistently keep a food/calorie diary, not to judge what I eat. The app let’s you copy meals from one day to the next, and gives you the option of setting reminders to log food, water and exercise.
4. Track your goals and resolutions by journaling everyday.
Shutterfly Personalized Journal
How adorable is this Shutterfly Personalized Journal Mr. Real Life Style just ordered for me? Perfect to congratulate yourself on keeping your New Year’s resolutions and identifying roadblocks on the days you didn’t. Seriously though, I am always amazed how much more calm, focused, and insightful I am when I regularly journal. When you have a brain like mine that never stops, journaling is especially helpful!
5. Read more by creating a pile of books you really want to read.
You don’t want to know how long some of these books have been on my bedside table. The generous people who gifted or loaned me these books will know and that is embarrassing enough!
The process goal/New Year’s resolution I’m trying to keep is to read before bed every night. I fall asleep faster when I read for 30 minutes before bed. The last thing I should see before bed is the printed word on paper, not my phone screen.
I’m keeping this pile of books in my office, exactly where it’s pictured, so I can be rewarded in watching it get smaller as the year goes on! I’m currently very absorbed in Bored and Brilliant by Manoush Zomorodi.
What are your New Year’s resolutions? What tools are you planning to use to help keep them? Tell us in the comments!
Real Life Style is a style consulting firm that teaches busy women to wear their power so they can live their lives fully and confidently. Lani Inlander and Kyle Dunphy are based in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area and serve clients across the country. We offer personal styling services, an on-demand e-course, corporate services, and training to become a personal stylist.
Once in a while, you can find Lani Inlander and Real Life Style on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Mostly, they are happily busy serving their fabulous clients, not hanging out online!
